During the construction of a building or other structure, placement of tools and machines used during the work can often present safety hazards. For example, extension cords are often utilized to provide power for tools and lighting, and are generally run along the floor or across the ground of the site. This can present many dangers as extension cords may be run through standing water, causing an electrocution danger, and present a tripping hazard to workers. Moreover, laying extension cords across the ground or floor can lead to damage to the cords themselves, as structures on the floor/ground over which the cords are stretched can cut or damage the cord, and the cords can be run over by machinery, which can also damage the cord.
Currently, most contractors continue running electrical cords on the ground because it is costly and time consuming to attach them to walls or roughed in structures. Contractors have also been known to use zip ties, wire, and rope to tie off extension cords. Unfortunately, zip ties are single-use devices, which causes unnecessary expense and waste, wire can damage the cords and can present electrical dangers, and rope can be large and unwieldy, with the end of the rope itself often remaining on the ground, which still presents safety issues with regard to tripping.
Other tools and devices commonly used on construction sites also present placement difficulties as there is no safe, stable place to hold them during use. For instance, flashlights must be either held (requiring loss of the use of a hand or an additional helper for holding the light), or perched in a location where the light can be used. Similarly, when utilizing more than one tool on a project, tools not immediately being used must often be either perched precariously on a nearby ledge or set on the floor, where they are difficult to retrieve. Loosely setting a tool on a perch often leads to damage to the tool, as it can easily roll or fail off of the perch.
Information-containing papers and devices such as plans, notes, tablet computers, laptops, etc. are also difficult to safely use on a construction site, as they must be similarly perched precariously on a nearby ledge or placed on the floor, making them making them subject to damage and difficult to read.
What are needed in the art are devices that can be easily attached and detached at a useful height at a construction site and that can hold or support devices and tools (e.g., electrical cords, flashlights, laptops, etc).